Law allowing teens to pre-register to vote takes effect today

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Credit: CNN

Law allowing teens to pre-register to vote takes effect today

Credit: CNN

DENVER — Starting Wednesday, 16- and 17-year-old Colorado residents can pre-register to vote in future elections, thanks to a new law.

Under House Bill 1135, teens can pre-register at their local county clerks’ offices or through the Colorado Secretary of State’s website. Starting in January 2014, they can also register at Department of Motor Vehicles offices when taking driving tests.

The measure does not change the legal voting age of 18. Teens are still ineligible to vote until they reach the age of majority, at which point a pre-registered teen’s name would automatically be transferred to voter rolls.

The law is a new way to “help turn (teens) into voters the rest of their lives,” Longmont Rep. Jonathan Singer told the Times-Call newspaper.